Friday, 12 August 2016

Concrete Fabrications Ltd., fined £107,000 after worker's arm was torn off in conveyor

Concrete Fabrications Ltd., a Bristol based manufacturer of concrete products was fined £107,758 (inc.costs) after a worker’s arm was torn off when it was pulled into the rotating tail pulley of a conveyor belt.

The circumstances were:

On 18 May 2015 a worker had to adjust tensioning rods which were located inside the machine’s guards, in close proximity to the conveyor belt and rotating tail pulley.

A sufficient risk assessment would have identified the risks associated with tracking conveyor belts, and identified appropriate control measures.

There needs to be clear procedures regarding maintenance and adjustments of machinery.

Arrangements should be in place to ensure that machinery is not run without the necessary guarding in place, and that clear isolation and lock off procedures exist.

However, an unsafe system of work existed for the maintenance of machinery, in so much that the dangerous moving parts of the machine were exposed during maintenance operations.

The worker noticed that aggregate had built up on the tensioning rod and he tried to knock off the material with a hammer so he could use a spanner to adjust the rod.

However, the hammer was dragged into the rotating machinery along with the employee’s arm which was severed between the shoulder and the elbow.